A PUBLICATION OF CLASS COM 492 AT CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY IRVINE - SPRING 2010 FIRST EDITION

The Feature

Of Genies,
Carps and Education

The Commentary

50 Years Ago: Hanoi Began the Vietnam War

By QUY V. LY

The Vietnamese have a charming custom of venerating the “three kitchen genies,” particularly at Tet, their Lunar New Year. This practice dates back to ancient times. Long ago, according to legend, a mishap separated a very poor couple from one another. The wife tried desperately to find her husband, but in vain. Eventually she married another man. The two grew old together, but then, one day, the woman’s first husband stood at her door. Full of remorse about her unfaithfulness, she committed suicide by jumping into the fire... more >

By UWE SIEMON-NETTO

Têt 2010 presents a milestone for Vietnamese-Americans. Numbering more than 1.6 million, they are set to become the second-largest community of Asian ancestry in the United States this year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. There is also a grim aspect to 2010. It is the 50th anniversary of an event that ultimately brought them to these shores. In 1960, Communist North Vietnam formed the “National Liberation Front... more >"Military Review-Lessons Learned from Vietnam

Running Short
of MonksBy EMILY WATSON

Three-fourths of the Vietnamese-Americans in Little Saigon practice Mahayana Buddhism, but monastic life is attracting fewer and fewer youthful novices, according to Thich (Venerable) An Minh a senior cleric. “Nowadays men join monasteries not as youngsters anymore but between the ages of 40 and 60; rarely are novices younger than 30,” said An Minh, also known as Tony Lam,... more>

Refugees From
Rafts to Riches

By RUTH DE NAULT

The South Vietnamese, largely educated and professional people, fled their Communist-conquered country often on rickety rafts became one of the most successful immigrant communities in the United States. They and their offspring now number 1.6 million. Nearly 10 percent reside in Orange County.Four hours after Frank Jao landed at Camp Pendleton Marine Base in 1975... more>

Wounded, Jailed, Tortured - the Suffering Veterans in our Midst

Thousands of Vietnamese in the United States are still suffering from the effects of torture inflicted on them during communist captivity decades ago, according to a recent study led by Harvard psychiatrist Richard F. Mollica, MD. Former South Vietnamese soldiers who suffered head injuries have lingering, severe cases of depression and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). According to the study, "Brain Structural Abnormalities and Mental Health Sequelae in South Vietnamese Ex-Political Detainees Who Survived Traumatic Head Injury and Torture," common Traumatic Head Injuries (THI) from explosions and beatings cause the brain to collide with the skull, and this impact leads to change in the brain's structure.KELLIE B. KOTRABAreports. more>

From Communist Camps to Freedom in WestminsterStories of three former captives